I just started back to work today and have been pumping while I'm away from dd. She is 11 months and nurses 4 Xday. Normally at 6am, 11ish, 4 ish and before bed. My question is, can I adjust my pumping schedule so I don't have to pump so much at work? I was thinking about pumping at 6am, then at noon, 5ish and then Before bed around 930. That shouldn't change my supply right? There also may be times where 6-7 hrs goes by before I can pump. (Due to my job, I'm a medic so i can be called out for prolonged time periods). I'm gone for about three days at a time :(. I remember posting something similar once and I was told that by around this time my supply will be established that some prolonged periods will not effect supply.

Thanks!

September 16th, 2013, 01:58 PM

@llli*carm3

Re: Pumping schedule at work question

I was thinking about you the other day, as I remember that we were going back to work around the same time. I don't know if I can answer your question, but I can tell you what I've been doing at work (though I'm not away for 3 days, so I don't know how comparable it'll be). I've been using a little manual pump at around the 6-7 hour of separation mark, more so for comfort. By the time I got to my 3rd day in a row, I was pumping a little bit less in the same amount of time, but not by much - and then nursing with baby, she seemed fine and happy with whatever milk I was producing. So I think my supply is adjusting according to how much I'm nursing or not nursing, you know? I would think that as long as you're pumping a couple times during the day, and you're comfortable, your LO should bring your supply up to where she needs it when you're together. And you'll have to see how it goes - there have been days that I've not managed to pump during my shift cause it's been too hectic, and although I was a bit uncomfortable, I didn't get any plugged ducts from going so long. Maybe by the third day you won't have to pump as much as you did on the first. Anyways, I hope this rambling helps a bit! Good luck with everything!